Isityhilelo—Siyintoni?

“ISITYHILELO!” (apocalypse ngesiNgesi) Yintoni efikayo engqondweni yakho xa usiva elo gama? Ngaba yimini yentshabalalo? Imbubhiso? IMfazwe Yehlabathi III? Ukuphela kwehlabathi? Ukuba engqondweni uba nale mifanekiso, asinguwe wedwa ocinga njalo. Inzululwazi neendaba ikamva labantu zilichaza lilelimfiliba. Ngoko ngaba iyamangalisa into yokuba abantu abaninzi benxulumanisa iziganeko zesityhilelo nokubhangiswa kwabantu ngesiganeko esithile esilishwangusha?

“Isityhilelo namhlanje asingomfanekiso nje weBhayibhile kodwa siye saba yinto enokwenzeka ngokwenene,” walumkisa ngelitshoyo uSosiba Jikelele weZizwe Ezimanyeneyo uJavier Pérez de Cuéllar kwintetho yokumiseIwa kwakhe. “Akuzange ngaphambili kumava abantu sibe kumngcipheko ocuthekileyo ophakathi kweshwangusha nokusinda.” Wayebhekisela entwenini? Wayebhekisela kungquzulwano lwenyukliya olunokubangelwa kukwanda kokukhuphisana ngezixhobo okukhoyo. Eqinisa isilumkiso sakhe kwiZizwe Ezimanyeneyo, wachaza ukuba “malunga nezazinzulu ezingama-500 000 emhlabeni jikelele zinikela ngolwazi lwazo ekuphandeni ngezixhobo ezintsonkothe ngakumbi nezibulala ngakumbi.”

Nabanye bayiphaphele imeko yanamhlanje. UHans Jonas, ongunjingalwazi odla umhlalaphantsi wengqondo kwiSikolo Esitsha Sokuphanda Ngezentlalo, uthi uloyiko lwakhe olukhulu “lusisisongelo sembubhiso ebangelwa luhlobo lwamandla angacetywanga ayimveliso yobugcisa bempucuko.” Unxulumanisa isityhilelo ‘nokuphela kobuncwane bomhlaba, ungcoliso, ukwenziwa inkangala komhlaba, kwanesisongelo sokutshatyalaliswa ngesiquphe yibhombu yeathom.’

Ngokufanayo, umbhali-mbali uGolo Mann wathi: “Asinakuba nayo enye imfazwe yehlabathi. Igama elithi imfazwe leliphosakeleyo. Kufuneka silibhangise ibinzana elithi ‘Imfazwe Yehlabathi III’ size sithi kunoko sisiganeko sesityhilelo okanye yimbubhiso.”—IDie Zeit yaseHamburg, Agasti 30, 1985.

Ewe, umntu uyaqonda ukuba usemngciphekweni wokuzitshabalalisa ngokwakhe. Kodwa ngaba ngumntu oya kuqalisa iziganeko zesityhilelo? Akunjalo ngokweBhayibhile, yona echaza ukuba ‘iNkosi, uThixo, uSomandla’—kungenguye umntu—iya ‘kubonakalisa abo bawonakalisayo umhlaba.’ (ISityhilelo 11:17, 18) Ngoko ke, ukuqonda oko iziganeko zesityhilelo zikuko ngokwembono yeBhayibhile kunokukunika imbono eyahlukileyo, entsha ngokupheleleyo neqaqambileyo.

Oko Ngenene Sikuko

Isityhilelo sichazwa kwincwadi eya kwabaseTesalonika. Apho umpostile uPawulos uthi: “Yinto ebubulungisa kuThixo ukubabuyekeza ngembandezelo abanibandezelayo; athi, nina babandezelwayo, anibuyekeze ngokuniphumza kunye nathi, ekutyhilekeni kweNkosi uYesu, ivela emazulwini inezithunywa zamandla ayo; inomlilo odangazelayo, ibaphindezela abangamaziyo uThixo, nabangazilulameliyo iindaba ezilungileyo zeNkosi yethu uYesu Kristu; bona aba baya kuva ukubethwa, intshabalalo engunaphakade ke leyo.”—2 Tesalonika 1:6-10.

Ngoko ke, isityhilelo kukutyhileka kukaYesu ebudeni bethuba ‘lembandezelo enkulu’ (Mateyu 24:21) NgokweAn Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, kaW. E. Vine, igama lesiGrike elithi a·po·kaʹly·psis libhekisela “kwiNkosi uYesu Kristu xa isiza kuphumeza imigwebo kaThixo.” Kwenye indawo, iBhayibhile ibhekisela koku kutyhileka ‘njengemfazwe yaloo mini inkulu kaThixo uSomandla’ eArmagedon.—ISityhilelo 16:14, 16; 19:11-21a

Kuyinyaniso ukuba, ngokubhekisele kwisityhilelo sibonile ukuba iBhayibhile ithetha “ngembandezelo,” ‘ngempindezelo,’ ‘nangokubethwa.’ Sekunjalo, ikwathetha ‘ngokuphumza’ abo bamsulwa abaye beva ubuhlungu bembandezelo. ILizwi likaThixo lisithembisa ukuba “kusaya kuba mzuzwana, angabikho ongendawo.” (INdumiso 37:10) Ngoko iziganeko zesityhilelo ziya kukhulula abantu kuyo yonke impembelelo engendawo. Ziya kuba lixesha lokuguqukela kwiimeko ezilunge ngakumbi kwabantliziyo zinyanisekileyo—zingezizo iziganeko zokuba bazoyike.

Ngaloo ndlela, kunokuba zibe kukuphanziswa okupheleleyo kwabo bonke, iziganeko zesityhilelo ziya kuba sisicombululo sobulungisa kwiingxaki zoluntu. Ngaba ingcamango yokuphila kwixesha elitsha—elo lobulungisa, uxolo nobumnandi—alinamtsalane kuwe nakwintsapho yakho?

Kodwa ngaba sisondela kwiziganeko zesityhilelo seBhayibhile? Ukuba kunjalo, ngaba sinayo indlela yokwazi ixesha lazo elingqalileyo?

[Umbhalo osemazantsi]